This has quickly become one of our favorite rainy day activities. Thankfully, it’s also a thrifty one, and it’s easy to store as an important piece of our closet-toy collection.
I keep our pipe cleaners in a gallon size zip lock bag along whit a large number of unused drinking straws, and pull them all out when I need a quiet moment, or for a fun way to work on fine motor skills with my kiddos.
The activity is simple really, you just push pipe cleaners through the straws and use them to construct fun buildings or structures.
When Little Man was younger it was a big challenge for him to be able to push the pipe cleaners through the straws. He had to work really hard to figure out how to do it. He’s much better at it now and can even build some simple shapes by connecting them (I helped with the house shown in the picture above).
While getting the pieces together is most of the fun for my son right now, I think this will be an activity that he loves for years to come. As he gets better with construction skills, he can use the straws and pipe cleaners to make intricate structures that will stand straighter than they would if they were made exclusively with pipe cleaners.
It’s a fun game to play and definitely entertains him for a long time. Enough time for me to get dinner in the oven or laundry folded and put away, and that’s always a win!
For even MORE indoor fun for kids check out this master list of activities that I compiled!
What’s your child’s favorite activity right now?
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Sarah says
this would make a great addition to a quiet bag, too!
Britni says
My son isn’t quite old enough for this yet but definitely pinning for future rainy days! Thanks for sharing on the weekend re-Treat link party!
Britni @ Play. Party. Pin.
Monica says
Oh wow, my son is so ready for this! I’m sure he will love it- now I just need to go buy the supplies. Thanks for the idea!
Barb @ A Life in Balance says
Great idea! I’m going to try this with my 5 year old while I’m writing for my blog.